Bristol · Cinema 1, Watershed
Hosted by Festival of Economics
Explore how AI and automation are reshaping work at this one-hour Festival of Economics panel in Bristol on 18 November 2026. Is AI taking jobs, or changing what it means to work? Financial Times journalist Sarah O’Connor brings insights from her book We Are Not Machines: The Fight for the Future of Work to Cinema 1 at Watershed. Rather than focusing only on predictions of mass unemployment, this in-person discussion examines what technological change is already doing to workers and workplaces. O’Connor’s reporting suggests that people are not simply losing jobs to machines. Instead, work can become lonelier, less creative and less human as AI, robots and automation take over particular tasks. Her investigation also uncovers more hopeful examples: jobs made safer, better and more enjoyable when workers gain control over new tools rather than rejecting them. The conversation will explore the power, design, institutions and ideas shaping this transition, and ask who gets to determine how AI enters the workplace. Speakers - Sarah O’Connor, Financial Times columnist, reporter and associate editor, writes about the world of work through weekly commentary, features and investigations. Her awards include the Orwell Prize for Exposing Britain’s Social Evils, the Wincott Award and Business and Finance Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards. - Heather Stewart, economics editor of The Guardian and former political editor, has covered AI and employment, welfare, the living wage, borrowing and alternative economic approaches. She has chaired numerous Festival of Economics events. - Sue Turner OBE, Professor in Practice in AI and Digital Technologies at the University of Bristol Business School, works across AI, data governance, ethics, law and leadership. Recognised among the world’s Top 100 Women in AI Ethics, she helps organisations adopt AI with accountability and purpose. Who should attend? This session will be particularly relevant to workers, employers, policymakers, researchers, students and anyone interested in AI ethics, automation, economics or the future of employment. It offers an accessible, evidence-led discussion rather than a technical workshop, so no specialist AI knowledge is required. View the event and registration details
